Behind Mike’s friendly exterior lies one of the sharpest minds in the financial technology industry. Over the last 20 years, Mike has held leadership roles at a number of a FinTech firms.

He joined Currencycloud in 2011, growing the firm to the point where they have processed over $25b of international payments and have raised $61m in funding since 2012.

You may be surprised to learn that Mike once spent six years working for the United Nations. In his spare time, Mike plays classical and jazz piano – a topic on which he can bore even the most ardent music aficionado rigid.

Todd Latham

Chief Marketing Officer & Head of Product

A bit of a nerd at heart, Todd is genuinely fascinated with how technology is transforming people’s lives for the better. Todd loves nothing more than analyzing data and using the insights to deliver a first rate customer experience, because happy customers are at the heart of what makes a company grow.

Todd has extensive experience in the technology and financial services sectors, where he has delivered marketing, product and customer experience strategies internationally for some of the world’s largest brands like American Express and Microsoft.

Fiona Tee

Chief Financial Officer

A fresh face on the Currencycloud team, Fiona joined in April 2016 as head number-cruncher (more commonly known as CFO). She oversees finance, compliance (risk and regulatory) and operations, however Fiona’s day-to-day is not solely about numbers. She also heads up human resources, handling our biggest asset: our people. With over 30 years’ industry experience, Fiona’s real passion lies with innovative high-growth companies.

For Fiona, the most satisfying roles are those that bring true partnership with the strategic and commercial side of the business.

Fiona is also passionate about the need to provide more role models for women in finance and technology. Away from her desk, she can be found skiing or exploring the latest fitness fads in London with her two daughters.

Ed Addario

Chief Technology Officer

Ed’s passion for computers and technology started when he unwrapped his first computer, the TRS-80, so he promptly gave up his (short) life ambition of becoming a neurosurgeon. With his trusty ZX-81 under his arm, he studied for a B.Sc. in Computer Sciences with minors in Applied Statistics and Machine Intelligence, and a M.Sc. in Manufacturing and Quality Engineering.

As the clones gave way to the ThinkPads, the PowerPCs, the multicore CPUs and iPads, Ed led small to very large teams in design, development and delivery of very successful software products for the Financial Services, Telecoms, Retail and Industrial sectors. He has held executive positions at start-ups and large companies both in the UK and the US and joins Currencycloud from Misys, where he was the Global Head of Architecture and Integration.

Ed contributes back to the community as an active participant of open source projects in the areas of distributed computing, peer-to-peer networks and cryptography.

Our purpose - why we do what we do

We want to create a better tomorrow. And we’ll do it by re-imagining the way money flows through the digital economy. We started our journey in 2012 with this thought and it’s helped us set our sights on our destination: creating a fairer, freer flow of wealth worldwide, challenging the status quo that has slowed and suppressed economies and entrepreneurship in the past.

At the same time, we know that our role is not to reinvent but to improve, to enable, to make the movement of money easier and seamless. That’s why we focus on removing any friction in the process, with the goal of inspiring more fluid and agile trade – based firmly on the values of simplicity, transparency and fairness.

Our mission - think big, act bold

We pride ourselves on being big picture thinkers. That’s not to say that we keep our heads in the cloud. Instead we mix the strategic with the tactical, the specialized knowledge with the practical insights needed to conceive and build the world’s most trusted Payments Engine.

That’s why we place such an emphasis on integration, and ensuring our Payments Engine fits neatly with the way our clients want to do business – rather than the other way around. What’s more, we know this is what the market has been waiting for. Capabilities that stimulate not just the free flow of currency across the globe, but also the next generation of successful payments companies.

Our vision - the journey is the destination

As for our company’s vision, we want to be audacious – to embrace the spirit of adventure. That’s why we’ve set ourselves the goal of positively impacting the lives of millions and millions of people. We achieve this with our Payment Engine that’s powering the new digital economy.

It’s about creating a better tomorrow for all, where money and commerce move fast and efficiently – supported by innovation and a greater level of transactional dynamism. To this we add our knowledge, tools and a practical approach to delivery that our clients already rely on to help scale and amplify their own business activities.

Our leadership team

Mike Laven

Chief Executive Officer

Todd Latham

Chief Marketing Officer & Head of Product

Fiona Tee

Chief Financial Officer

Ed Addario

Chief Technology Officer

Built on solid foundations

Our story starts with FX Capital Group, a brokerage firm founded by Nigel Verdon that believed there was a fundamental problem in the way international payments were made.

FX Capital Group realized that the future of international payments lay in technology, and clients were consistently being underserved by traditional providers. It knew, too, that transparency mattered. It was out of this change of thinking that Currencycloud was born in 2011. In January 2012 Michael Laven was named Chief Executive Officer to lead the company.

Currencycloud is backed by Sapphire Ventures, Rakuten, Anthemis, Notion Capital and GV - and has raised $61m in funding as of March 2017.

Since launch, we’ve grown dramatically and we’re now helping billions of pounds flow in payments every year. Hundreds of platform clients have signed up with us, serving hundreds of thousands of end-customers and impacting millions.